Valve structure



lselu 22, 1925. www2 HEATH smuc'rva:

Original Ple Jan. 24m 1923 una: n w14;

Patented Sept. 22, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT QFFECE.

FREDERICK HEATH, OF BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON.

VALVE STRUCTURE.

Original' application filed January 26, 1923, Serial No. 615,122. Divided and this application lcd March T0 all whom t may concer@ Be it known that I, FREDERICK HEATH, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Bellingham, in the county of Thatcom and State of Washington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Valve Structures; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in valve structures, and more particularly to such as are adaptable for use in control' ling the supply of oil to burners,-in a steamboiler plant, for example, such as shown and described in my copending application iiled Jan. 2G, 1923 (Patent No. 1,502,564, issued July 22, 19211) and designated by Serial No. 615,122, and of which this application is a division.

An object of my present .invention is to provide an oil-controlling valve which will automatically cut off the How of fluid, such as oil7 upon a reduction of pressure in the oil delivery line and which must be manually set to restore working conditions thereby avoiding premature opening of the valve with resultant loss of fuel.

With thisand other objects in View, the invention consistsin certain novel features rof construction/and combinations of parts as hereinafterv set forth and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is' a vertical sectional View of a valve structure embodying my improvements;

Figure 2 is a sectional view on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Figure 1, and

Figure 4 is an enlarged elevation of the plug or piston member.

My impro-ved oil control valve 1 is designed to be fitted in the oil delivery line near the' pump,-the arrangement of the valve in the system being such as fully shown and rdescribed in 'In copending application hereinbefore identified.

- My improved oil control valve comprises .a valve body or casing 18 having an inlet port 19 in its side which is connected with the discharge port or outlet of the pump, and also provided with an outlet port 20 from Serial No. 698,837.

which the oil delivery line leads and which is preferably diametrically opposite the inlet port. A partition or web 21 is provided within the casing 18 and extends vertically from a point above the outlet port downwardly to a horizontal web or partition 22 which projects inwardly from the side wall of the casing at a point near the bottom of the same, the interior of the casing being thereby divided into a pressure chamber 28 and a passage 24 leading to the outlet port. A port or opening 25 in the web 22 establishes communication between the chamber 23 and the passage 24, and a circular boss 2G is formed on the upper side of the partition or web 22, the upper side of this boss being inclined downwardly toward the web 21 as clearly shown at 27 in Figure 1. lVithin the chamber 23 and alined axially with the opening 25 and the boss 26 is a barrel or piston guide and support 2,8 having its lower end inclined, as at 29, so as to lie parallel with the surface 27, the barrel being supported fiXedly within the casing, as by arms 80 cast integral with the casing and the barrel. A free piston 31 is slidably mounted in the barrel with its lower end adapted to enter the boss 26 and rest upon an internal annular shoulder 32 therein, the piston being provided intermediate its ends with an annular shoulder 33 to engage an'annular internal shoulder 34 in the barrel and having a ange or bead 35 at its upper end to rest upon the upper end of the barrel. The piston will thus be firmly supported in its lowest position without jamming and may be readily unseated when the apparatus is to operate. The piston is also constructed with annular grooves 36 to receive piston packing rings 37 so as to have a fluid-tight sliding lit in the barrel. It will be readily understood that the oil entering through the port 19 fills the chamber 23 and surrounds the barrel 28, and it will be readily note-d upon reference to Figure 1, that the piston, when in its lowest position, extends across the space between the surfaces 27 and 29 and fills the bore of the boss 26 so that the oil will be held in the pressure chamber. To permit the oil to escape, it is obviously necessary to raise the piston so that at least a portion of the space between the surfaces 27 and 29 will be opened to the bore of the boss 26, and to accomplish this resultI provide a plunger or lifting pin 38 which is aligned axially with the piston and is slidable through a gland 39 in the bottom of the valve casing. The lower end of the plunger is pivoted to a lever or handle 4() which is fulcrunicd upon a bracket or hanger 41 depending from the valve casing. By swinging the handle upwardly, the plunger is carried against the lower end ot' the valve piston and caused to raise and unseat the same. As the lower end of the valve piston clears the lowest point of the surface 27, oil will flow under the piston and exert presi sure thereon. The area exposed to the pressure of the oil will increase as the piston rises across the escape ope-ning between the surfaces 27 and 29 until the lower end of the piston is within the barrel at which time the maximum pressure will be established. The pressure of the oil will then be sullicient to hold the piston elevated and maintain normal conditions until the pump stops or there is another abnormal drop in the pressure in the delivery line. The plunger 38 may be withdrawn after the oil pressure has been established and full flow of oil to the outlet will be thereby permitted. It is to be understood that the plunger 38 does not lit tight in the port 25 but oil may pass around the plunger to lubricate the same and avoid dislodgment of the piston or valve as the plunger is withdrawn.

On the top of the casing 18 is secured aV yoke or open frame 42 in which is mounted a stop rod 43 which is alined axially with the valve piston and is adjustable toward and from the same through its threaded connection 44 with the top of the frame 42, a handle wheel 45 being provided on the upper end of the rod to facilitate its manipulation. Immediately below the threaded portion of the rod, a pointed disk 46 is carried by the rod to coact with graduations 47 on the frame and enable the operator to accurately adjust the device. If the rod be set in its lowest position, it will bear upon the piston and thereby prevent opening of the valve, and as the rod is raised it will permit the valve to be opened to a greater or less extent so that the volume and pressure of the oil in the delivery line may be very accurately regulated. In the illustrated position of the parts, the valve may have a slight vertical movement but not enough to effect its unseating. A smooth-bored pressure-gage tube 48 is fitted around the stop-rod 43 and a hand Wheel 49 on this tube coacts, as a pointer, with the graduations 47 to enable the operator to accurately set the tube. The lower end of the tube has a threaded connection 50 with the bore of a gland 51 fitted in the top of the valve casing, and it will be readily understood that, by reason of this threaded connection, rotation of the tube will cause it to move endwise toward or from the valve piston.

Oil flowing into the chamber 23 will exert pressure upon both ends of the piston 31 and the pressure on the upper larger end would obviously overbalance the pressure on the lower end and hold the valve in closed position, but the contact of the stop rod with the upper end of the piston reduces the exposed area of the upper end of the piston so that the valve will be balanced. lf it be found that the valve tends to close, the exposed area of the upper end of the piston may be further reduced by setting the tube 48 against the piston as will be readily understood.

When the apparatus in which the valve' is employed is operating normally, the pressure ot the oil will keep the valve open and the oil will flow to the burners. Should a leali develop in the oil-delivery line or the pressure be reduced .from any other cause between the oil control valve and the burners, the valve piston will at once drop to its seat and cut off the further flow of oil. Obviously, the valve will not open automatically but the unseating lever or handle must be raised to effect the opening and, if the handle be raised before the leak is closed, the pressure under the valve will be insuilicient to hold it open and it will close as soon as the handle is released. Premature opening of the valve is thus avoided.

It will be understood, of course, that the terms upper and lower appearing herein are used for convenience only in connection with the drawing, and the device may be inverted with respect to the illustration without necessitating any change in construction or operation.

Having fully described my invention what 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, is l 1. The combination of a valve casing, a free imperforate piston valve therein having both ends exposed to pressure of a fluid flowing through the valve casing and adapted to seat upon reduction of the pressure and cut off the flow, means for opening the valve, and variable means for limiting the opening movement of the valve.

2. The combination of a valve casing having an inlet and an outlet, a free piston therein having its lower end arranged to close the outlet of the casing, means for raising the piston whereby to open the outlet and expose both ends of the piston to the pressure of a fluid flowing through the casing, and means for varying' the effective pressure area of the upper end of the piston.

3. The combination of a valve casing having an outlet in its bottom and having an escape passage above and in communication with said outlet, the escape passage being inclined with respect to the outlet, a free piston in the casing adapted to extend across the escape passage and seat in the outlet, and means for unseating the piston to permit flow through the easing, the piston being supported in unseated position by pressure of fluid in the easing on its lower end and seating upon reduction of the pressure.

4. The combination of a Valve easing having an outlet in its bottom, a barrel in the casing aligned with the outlet and havingf both its upper and its lower end open` there being: an obliquely arranged escape passage between the barrel and the outlet, a free piston mounted in and extenfilingf through the barrel and adapted to extend across the escape passage and scat in the outlet, a manually operable plunger mounted in the bottom of the casing in alinement with the piston to impinge against the lower end of the piston and unseat the same, and variable means above the barrel for limiting the unseating movement of the piston.

5. The combination of a valve casing, a free piston therein to control the How therethroughr` said piston tending; constantly to seat and when unseated having both ends subjected to pressure from fluid lowing` through the easing, a stop rod adapted to bear upon the upper end of the piston, and a tube enclosing the stop rod and adapted to bear upon the upper end of the piston.

The coml'iination of a Valve casing, a frame risingr trom the casing, a free piston in the casing controllingr the llow therethrough, a stop rod mounted for enduise movement in the frame and adaplted to bear upon the end ot the piston` a tube encil-eliner the rod and also mounted for endwise movement in the trame and adapted to bear upon the end ot the piston, and means for adjusting' the rod and the tube,

In testimony whereof, l have signed this` specification.

FREDERICK HEATH. 

